Abstract

Although there have been attempts throughout the ages to understand, describe, and treat depression (Jackson, 1986), the word depression continues to be used variably according to context and the predisposing biases of the speaker. Our discussion in this chapter embodies a fluid understanding of depression. Inherent to our constructive position is an appreciation for the heterogeneity of depressive disorders in the elderly. While acknowledging the considerable strides made during the last 20 years in delineating major depression using the categorical methods of the third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III; American Psychiatric Association, 1980) and subsequent editions of the DSM, we suggest limits to that framework for the optimal understanding of the vicissitudes of depression in old age. We propose that an optimal understanding of depression in general, but particularly in the elderly, requires a biopsychosocial formulation that is derived and interpreted in the context of a particular, contextually and historically contingent, narrative.

De Leon C.F., Kasl, S. V., & Jacobs, S. (1994). A prospective study of widowhood and changes in symptoms of depression in a community sample of the elderly. Psychological Medicine, 24, 613–624.CrossRefGoogle Scholar

Copyright information

Authors and Affiliations

Keith G. Meador

1

Dan G. Blazer

1

1.School of Medicine and Divinity SchoolDuke UniversityDurhamUSA

About this chapter

Cite this chapter as:

Meador K.G., Blazer D.G. (1998) The Variability of Depression in Old Age. In: Lomranz J. (eds) Handbook of Aging and Mental Health. The Springer Series in Adult Development and Aging. Springer, Boston, MA